Rohith Vemula suicide: Karnataka Dalit rights activists and students speak against injustices
Hyderabad, Jan 22: The tragic and untimely death of Rohith Vemula, a 26-year-old Dalit research scholar from Hyderabad, saw several protests in Bengaluru. Students and activists staged demonstrations on the campus of the Bangalore University and in front of the Town Hall in the city recently. Angry protesters were seen holding placards and shouted slogans demanding justice for Rohith.
Rohith hanged himself on Sunday (January 17) after being expelled by the authorities of the Hyderabad Central University, his alma mater.
The debate on injustices meted out to Dalits by the upper castes has started picking up, especially in university campuses across the country.
"The students from the Dalit community face a lot of difficulties in educational institutions across Karnataka. Be it their admission procedures or living conditions in hostels, we have witnessed a systematic discrimination faced by the students of the minority communities," Venkatesh M, president of Dalit Bahujan Movement in Karnataka, told OneIndia.
"Most of the Dalit students studying in higher educational institutions come from rural areas. They are poor students. Moreover, because of the caste-based discrimination prevalent in our society, these students face a lot of problems. Even teachers are biased towards Dalit students. We have received several complaints related to injustices faced by the Dalit students. Situation becomes worse when they face violence," added Venkatesh.
According to statistics, 17.15 percent of the state's total population belongs to the schedule caste communities. A total of 6.95 percent people belong to the schedule tribe communities.
"It is a huge number. We can't ignore the problems of minorities if we want an all-round development of the nation," said Y Mariswamy, a Dalit rights activist and state organizer of the Samajika Parivarthana Janandolana (SPJ), an NGO.
"Most of the Dalit students face discrimination in silence. Our legal system does not provide enough scope to deliver justice to these marginalized youngsters," added Mariswamy.
After Rohith's death, allegedly a victim of caste politics, several students in the campus of Bangalore University are openly discussing about Dalit issues.
"I
am
a
Dalit
student.
Because
of
my
caste
I
have
faced
a
lot
of
abuse.
Students
from
upper
castes
don't
socialize
with
us.
Teachers
are
also
often
biased
towards
us,
especially
when
it
comes
to
marking
and
clearing
our
project
works.
Unfortunately,
we
can't
do
much
about
such
partiality,"
said
a
female
student
from
Bangalore
University,
who
does
not
want
to
be
named.
Her
male
friend,
who
belongs
to
the
ST
community
and
pursuing
his
PhD
from
the
University,
said
that
reservation
was
not
going
to
achieve
its
goal
without
proper
integration
of
all
in
society.
"It is a shame that most of our higher educational institutions are not inclusive. Rohith was a victim of caste oppression. We need to end such injustices in modern India," he added.
OneIndia News